Innocent But Guilty
by Ginger Brownies
Summary: Isabella Swan and Edward Cullen are star crossed lovers, but there's one problem: Isabella works for father, Charles, at the main law firm in New York whilst Edward is the son of Carlisle Cullen, also big time lawyer and biggest rival to Charles Swan. AH


**AN: I know I'm nowhere near finishing my other story yet, but I thought I'd take a little time out and write a one-shot! This one's a little different, so I hope you like it! You got to love me, right? Well, we all love a bit of Lawyerella.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any recognizable content.**

I walked into the office that morning, not knowing what to expect as usual.

Let me explain, I'm Isabella Swan, age 21. My father is Charles Swan of Lake Swan Law, the biggest law firm in New York, and our family is rich to say the least. My grandparents had been the fifth generation to be the firm's corporate law duo and expected my father and mother, Renee, to be the sixth. However, three days before my parents were due to go into business together, my mother backed out. She had said it was not the path she had ever wanted to take and that she always wanted to go into hairdressing. Her life career was never going to be law, in her opinion, so she bowed out while she still could. I have never disliked her for it, as I know I would probably have spoken up too. She did not want to lose me, but somehow, through my working for my father, she did involuntarily.

When she left, my father did not want me to keep contact with her at all. His words when I asked why were, "She is working class now, my Isabella. We are the upmost of the upper class; let us not tarnish the family name by fraternizing with that kind of person, my darling."

Every year at Christmas she would send me a note on a postcard to my house, giving a secret location for us to meet in private. My father never heard of these as we lived separate lives whilst not at work.

Charles Swan is the type of businessman that you avoid if you're between the ages of 20 and 30, as he is what most would call promiscuous. He likes to sleep with different women each night, most from the office. It hasn't gotten to the press yet but I think it will soon enough. His actions repulse me but also affect me. All of his past 'flames', as he likes to call them, glare at me every morning as if it's my fault he picks a new victim every night. You can guarantee that if he's going home, one of the girls at work will be going with him.

I, on the other hand, have built a respectable reputation for myself at work, despite my father's tendencies to sleep around. A couple of months ago, my father's deputy, William Lake, called me into his office.

_**Flashback**_

"_Could Isabella Swan please report to Mr. Lake's office, that's Isabella Swan to Mr. Lake's office, thank you."_

_I frown and begin pondering why Eleanor is summoning me to William's office whilst I approach his door. I rap on the door lightly with my knuckles and wait for him to allow entrance._

"_Come in, Ms. Swan." William calls._

_I enter the room and stand before his desk, in a very professional manner._

"_Good afternoon, Mr. Lake." I greet politely, desperate to know why I'm here._

"_Please, call me William. Now, Ms. Swan, I've called on you to help with the upmost of important cases that we have ever had, in all of our time here. First of all, are you interested in helping out?" He asks, in a less than professional tone, but more of a family tone._

"_Call me Isabella, please. It's only right that we are both on first name terms if you insist that I must be." I smile but continuing, "And of course, I would love to be of help to you. What exactly is the case?" I query, curiously._

"_Thank you, well, Isabella, it's an unusual one to be so important, if I'm honest. It's a property case."_

"_A property case?" I repeat in a parrot-like manner._

"_Indeed, property. Our client, Ms. Kerry Lewis is living in a four storey town house that has been split into four flats. She lives on the top floor and has a young child of age three. Those details are just things that can help us. The case is involving rent payment. Kerry could not pay her rent for three months as she became unemployed and her priority was her child, of course. She made an agreement that was written down," He shows me the agreement and I nod. "And when it came to the third month, her landlord, Mr. Harry Radcliffe of Charles, Radcliffe and Son Real Estate, told her she had a week to leave or pay her outstanding rent balance."_

_I gasp and say, "But the agreement says that she was free of rent for three months and then she would have to pay. He should not have taken action against her until the fourth month."_

"_Well, we know this, but he claims to have said she had __**until **__the third month to get a job and such." I frown and he carries on, "But there's more. Kerry paid him two days later and gave him more to account for its lateness. A week later, she was kicked out after finding a job two days earlier. So Kerry and Amelia Lewis became homeless, even though Kerry had paid over what she was supposed to."_

"_That's terrible. No wonder she filed against him; especially when she has a child to think of. Why on earth did he kick her out?" I ask, infuriated already._

"_He claimed she paid less than asked."_

"_But she paid more!"_

"_My theory is that he stole some of her rent money to pay for refurbishments on his house before submitting it to the company's tills and books."_

"_How did you devise that?" I ponder out loud._

"_He was broke, his parents had cut him off, he had no money and then out of the blue, his house was being refurbished. Coincidental or what?"_

_I laugh, "Yup."_

_**End Flashback**_

So, I am the lawyer taking the case of course. The pre-trial discovery is in two days and the trial is a week later. William claimed to be using me as "I'm the best", but I would beg to differ. He is a much better lawyer than I am.

I sit in my office, with my assistant in my pre-office, just outside. I'm looking on the internet for anything which can make our case look better in our favour. As I'm looking, I see something rather peculiar.

Harry Radcliffe has had property suits against him before. And from what I can tell, it has been when his parents have cut him off. This isn't a one off; it's an occurrence.

On my discovery, I run out of my office, past my assistant, leaving her startled and leg it across the office, which is hard in six inch heels, to William's office. I knock loudly and urgently, hoping he lets me in.

"Come in!" He shouts.

"Mr. Lake, I- I- I- found something!" I breathe hard through my words.

"You found something? What did you find, Isabella? Tell me!"

"I found evidence that we can use in court!"

"Tell me."

"I don't need to tell you, I can _show _you!"

I fiddle about typing in various things before finding what I was looking for. I point at the screen and he gasps as he realises what he is reading.

"It's an occurrence?" He queries.

"Yes, it is." I nod.

"Well, I never. Well done, Isabella. I would never have known to look for something like that. Perhaps we should talk to your father about your outstanding performance at this law firm."

"What? My father? As in..."

He nods, "Indeed, we should go now as a matter of a fact."

He gets up and pulls me along by the hand in the direction of my father's office. As I'm being dragged I walk smack bang into someone. I look up and see that it's our opposing counsel, Edward Cullen.

"Oops, I'm sorry!" I realise William has stopped and let my hand go.

"Oh no, the apology is all mine, trust me. I'm awfully sorry, I should have been looking where I was going, but I was moving so quickly..." He says in a voice that can only be described as a waterfall of perfectly enunciated words. I notice he has a lisp; it's adorable to say the least.

I finally look up and meet the greenest eyes I have ever seen. They pierce mine with a depth I have never experienced in my life. They remind me of precious emeralds, like the May birthstone; my mother's birthstone.

"Um, Miss?" He interrupts my scrutiny of his amazing looks.

"Sorry, I was just... I get lost in my thoughts sometimes." I stutter.

My phone beeps and I mentally curse myself for having my phone on loud.

**Bob: **_**Hey sweetie how's your day? Love you, Bob. Xxxx**_

Bob is my mother. We use codenames in our contact lists for the sake of my dad; just in case he feels like snooping around in my phone. We know it's safe because he would rather face the wrath of every single one of his exes than admit that I might just be in a long term relationship.

I blush deeply and quickly send a reply.

**Steve: **_**Hey, busy at the minute, bumped into opp counsel. Will reply later. Love you too! Steve. Xxxx**_

Once I have replied to my mother, I look up to see a disappointed look in Edward's eye. I remember that I'm needed, all of a sudden, when I see William out of the corner of my eye.

"I'm really sorry, but I kind of need to go talk to my father. I'll see you at the PTD?"

"Uh, sure." He says, timidly before walking in the direction of my assistant's office.

We eventually get to see my father and William sings my praises before my father says, "No, I won't promote her. She's as high as she's getting." He then dismisses us.

We leave deflated and I slump back to my office. As I go to open my assistant's office door, William speaks.

"Don't lose hope, Isabella. I will get you what you deserve." He nods and says goodbye before returning to his office.

I walk into Angela's office and greet her, "Hello Angela. Any calls or anything whilst I was gone?" I ask.

"Yes, Ms. Swan, there was a visitor. I sent him in."

I frown at this, as she isn't supposed to let anyone in. I go into my office and find Edward Cullen rooting through my desk papers. I clear my throat.

"Ahem."

"I, uh, um, that wasn't what it looked like. I put my pen down and I don't know where it went." He says nervously.

"So why is there paper sticking out of your jacket that wasn't there before?"

"Um... Ugh, sorry." He hands me the paper and I open it to realise it's the evidence I had earlier found.

"Get out of my office."

"Pardon, Ms. Swan?"

"Get out. You clearly came here and intimidated my assistant to let you in to my office, knowing I was absent. Then you rooted through my desk finding anything that incriminates your client and tried to sabotage the case." I spit. What can I say; I'm good at my job.

"Okay, you got me. I'm very sorry, I..."

"How much is he paying you to try and make him look innocent?" I ask spitefully.

"He slipped me five hundred as a tip and said I will get an extra two thousand if we win." He looks down, ashamed of his actions clearly.

"Right, well, I acknowledge your honesty, but I think it's best if you leave now, Mr Masen."

"Wait, Ms. Swan, I meant to ask, are you going to the lawyers party that my father is holding for our two companies and another firm in town, on Wednesday night?" He looks nervous.

"I don't know, why?"

"I just wondered..."

I grunt in response and glare at him, still not over the going through my stuff.

"Well, if that's it, get out. I'll see you on Thursday afternoon for the pre-trial discovery." I say.

"Okay, and, um, Ms. Swan?"

"What?" I hiss.

"You... I... I'm sorry." He stutters.

"For God's sake just get out."

"Sorry... I... Bye." He stumbles on his way out and closes the door.

A pang hits my heart and I frown then it happens, the tears well up in my eyes. I try my best to push them back down but they flow before I can. Seeing him stutter over his words and act so clumsy reminds me of how I deal with my father. I don't want to be him; I want to be myself. He is a colossal monster that enjoys taking over everything in a disrespectful manner.

I shake the thoughts of him from my brain and find that Edward is left in my thoughts. He's unusual. He becomes so clumsy around me and I have no idea why; I'm nothing special, I am just a lawyer, so is he. I leave the office that night dazed and confused as to how I have had such a great impact on one man of such importance in his family's firm.

As I get into my bed, I am still unable to shake thoughts of him. Falling asleep, I dream of him.

The next days leading up to the pre-trial discovery were just as torturous as the first and believe me it got no easier. My sleep became less and less every night and my days at work were spent trying to console my thoughts of him and hoping he would 'pop in' again to snoop around my desk.

The fact that I found no better evidence to use in the trial made the days no easier as I knew William was waiting on me to find another gem of evidence to use. Now, I also had my father breathing down my neck telling me to stop getting people to beg for my promotion because I wasn't getting one. He just wouldn't listen to me when I tried to say that I didn't want a promotion.

Wednesday finally comes and I had decided on attending the lawyer's party. My decision was made officially last night, but I hadn't wanted to tell anyone. Even though the pre-trial discovery is still one day away, the party has lifted my spirits. I walk into work with a spring in my step knowing I would see Edward that day. I get on with my work and when home time finally arrives, I feel like a kid on Christmas. I speed walk out of the office and drive home quickly as I can to get ready for the party.

When I finally get into my house, I run upstairs and jump into the shower, taking my time to make myself smell nice. Then I dry my hair and put on some natural make-up leaving out the lip gloss before pulling out my outfit from the wardrobe. It consists of a black floral printed lace prom style dress that I pair with some stylish Ysl Tribtoo tan heels and a grey pleated clutch. For accessories I add a Tiffany key necklace and Vivienne Westward ribbon heart earrings. I look my outfit over and decide to add a small tiara to finish it off and flash my wealth.

Lawyer's parties are generally all about flaunting how rich you are or, in some cases, aren't. I finish getting ready and call my driver. He tells me he is downstairs already, so I go down and get in the car. He pulls up outside the doors to the Cullen's firm building and opens the door for me. I step out carefully and thank him, telling him that I will call when I need him to collect me. He nods and drives away.

I go in, and immediately I catch Edward's eye; he is greeting the guests as they enter. He greets the three people in front of me quicker than he greeted anyone else. As he reaches me, he takes my hand to shake it.

"Good evening, Isabella." He smiles at me like a gentleman and my heart warms.

"Good evening, Edward." I say in a voice that could melt ice.

I take in the fact that he hasn't released my hand yet.

"How are you, this fine evening?"

"I'm fine thank you, Edward, and yourself?"

"I'm much better thank you. I thought you weren't coming?" He queries.

"I changed my mind; however, I only said I didn't know; I did not decline your invitation."

"I see. Well, it's a pleasure to see you." He grins widely.

I notice him sneakily look me up and down before returning to gaze into my eyes. I'm slightly fascinated by his piercingly green eyes, as I was the first time we met. I clear my throat and turn to look into the on-going party. He puts a finger under my chin and pulls my gaze back to him. I am confused by this as he is just a person that I work alongside occasionally.

"I need to talk to you. In private, please." He says in a hushed tone, with an underlying hint of pleading.

"Why? What do you want from me, Edward? I can't give you whatever it is, you know that. My father would kill me if he even knew I was talking to you, so just leave me alone. Okay?" I hiss.

"Isabella..."

"No, that's enough. Know when to stop, Edward." As I finish this sentence, he looks around and then picks me up in a fireman's lift so that I cannot escape.

"Put me down!" I shriek, but he ceases to listen to me, carrying me away to a back room.

He puts me down and locks the door of the room and I realise, after taking in my surroundings that we're in his office.

"Okay, now will you talk to me?" He asks, desperately.

I sigh, not speaking.

"Isabella?"

"What?"

"Speak to me, please..."

"No."

"Please."

"No."

"But..."

"Shut up."

"Look, I don't know what this is either, but the least you could do is try to help me figure it out."

"Why? It's not like we could be together."

"Who said that?"

"No one, its common sense. We work on the same case and for rivalling firms, we can't be together."

"That's what makes it more fun."

"Maybe, but my dad would murder us both if he found out."

"And? We'd be together, at least."

"It's too risky."

"Wait, so you admit there's something here?"

I begin to get tired of the back and forth and walk over to him, standing about an inch away from him. "What do you think?"

"Um... I... Uh. I'm currently not in a position to answer any more questions..." He stutters.

I lift one hand and knot it in his hair.

"Isa... Um."

I pull on his hair lightly and he leans down, his face inches away from mine.

"Is this... I... Isabella." He stumbles over his words.

I brush my nose against his, teasing him.

"Isab..."

"Really? I'm like an inch away from you and you're still talking?" I query, inquisitively.

"Shouldn't I be?"

I yank his hair hard and he gasps. "Answered?"

"Yup..."

He hesitates as if asking my permission and I stare blankly at him.

"Wait."

"For god's sake, Edward."

"Let me unlock the door, else it will look dodgy."

I sigh heavily and take my hand from his hair. "Fine, whatever."

The moment is completely ruined and I'm unsure of whether I want it to be anymore. He unlocks the door and I go and sit on the edge of his desk. He comes back over toward me and lifts me off of the desk, making me frown. He sits in my place and pulls me between his legs.

"The height difference isn't an issue now."

I giggle softly and he frowns.

"Why are you just stood there?" He asks.

"Wh-what?"

"You heard me."

I look to the floor and suddenly, I have his hands on my face being pulled down to his and he's kissing me.

Just as our tongues begin to battle, the door opens. We pull apart and Edward swears.

"Son, what are you doing hiding this beauty away from the world? Give some other guys a chance, would you!" His father guffaws.

I put my head on Edward's shoulder, praying that I won't be recognised. I feel Edward's hand at the base of my back, supporting me.

"Um, sorry Dad?" He says, nervously.

"It's okay, I'm glad to see you settling down as such, but don't forget to introduce her to your mom else you'll have a problem."

Edward nods, "Thanks Dad... See you later."

"Bye son and nice meeting you, Miss Swan."

I turn on the spot and gape at him. "You knew who I was?"

"I did, indeed. It's my job to know my rivals kids."

"Why aren't you angry?"

"You're pretty, plus, my son hasn't been so happy in a long while, Isabella. If you're what it takes to get him there, then we'll overlook the rival part." He winks.

"Well... Thank you, Mr Cullen."

"You're welcome, Miss Swan, but please, call me Carlisle."

He says goodbye and leaves us to it.

"Edward, breathe."

He grins up at me and then kisses me chastely once more. "Well, we aren't dead."

"That's because it was your dad not mine."

"We should go back out... Is your dad here?"

"Nope, he sent me as the rep."

He takes my hand and leads me out into the party. As we enter the main area, people begin to stare at our interlinked hands and I know it's going to get back to my father. For once, I actually don't care and I leave my hand in his. We make our way to the bar and sit down on stools next to each other.

"Prepare to get drunk, Miss Swan." Edward winks at me.

"No, _you_ should be the one preparing for the land of the very drunk, Mr Cullen." I smirk.

He chuckles and leans down to kiss me, but I squeeze his hand before he can.

"Not here, it's dangerous." I whisper in his ear.

"Why? I want everyone to know who's you are."

"I am _not _being objectified!" I shout louder than I meant.

A lawyer from my father's firm sidles up to us, now completely separated as I have dropped Edward's hand.

"Hey. You're Isabella, right?"

"What's it to you, man?" Edward sneers.

"Back off, dude!" The guy says.

"She's mine, you need to back off."

"I am _not._" I insist. "Yes, my name _is _Isabella. Why?"

"Fancy a drink, honey?" The guy asks, flirting heavily with me.

"No, she does not!" Edward roars.

"As a matter of **fact**, I would quite like a drink." I say politely before getting up and walking away with the stranger from my firm, swinging my hips extensively while I walk.

The guy leans down and kisses me, taking me by surprise.

I pull away, "Um, sorry to be... Whatever, I didn't want to kiss you."

"Pardon?" He says, digging his fingers into my hip.

I slap his arm and hiss, "I wanted a _drink_, not a _kiss_. There's a difference."

I see Edward storming over, so I say quickly, "But, now I know where this is headed..." And pull the guy's head down to kiss him.

Soon after I am making out in the middle of a party with a colleague that I hardly know and he is groping my ass. I feel rather uncomfortable but I endure it, to upset Edward.

The guy pulls away and says, "By the way, I'm Nathan."

"Nice to meet you, Nathan, you already know I'm Isabella, but call me Bella."

"Nice to meet you too, Bella." He manages through panting.

"Shall we take this somewhere private?" I suggest.

His eyes widen and he nods. I take his hand and lead him to a random room I find. As we close the door and lock it, he crushes his lips to mine in desire. I pull my tiara from my head and remove my bracelet, still kissing him. I pull at his tie and undo it before pulling it from his neck and undoing his top button. Then I move to his belt, unbuckling it and adding it to the pile that is slowly building up. As I unbutton his shirt, I feel him unzipping my dress. Once I finish taking his shirt away, I slip out of my dress, left in my matching red bra and panties. He releases my lips to look me up and down, and then gasps. I run my hands over his chest, smiling suggestively. He pulls me to him and kisses me hard, before groping my ass again. I lift myself up and wrap my legs around his waist as he desperately pulls me towards him. I can feel him through his trousers, pressing against my leg. He begins to grind against me, desperately seeking some friction between us.

All of a sudden, the door flies open and I pull away from him, turning around, my legs still locked around him.

"What the hell, Isabella!" Edward shrieks.

"Dude! Get out!" Nathan says, trying to cover me.

I unwrap myself from him and walk over to Edward.

"That could have been you. But you were an ass, so now it's him." I poke him in the chest as I say 'could have been you' and smirk.

Edward looks down at what little I'm wearing and says, "Well, I guess I'd better go. But I brought this," He hands me a bottle of vodka and coke mixed; my favourite. "See you."

"Whoa, wait." I say.

"What?" Nathan stutters.

"Edward." I say, softly.

He turns around, looking at me curiously. I walk over and pick my dress up, putting it back on. Once I've sorted myself out, I walk over to him.

He pulls me to him and says, "If you're in this, you're in it for longer than two minutes, okay?"

"Okay, I'm sorry. It made me mad that you tried to claim me when we weren't official or anything."

"I'm sorry, Isabella."

"It's okay... Let's get out of this room." I say looking back at Nathan sat on the floor.

We go back to the party and get a drink, acting as if nothing had happened. After around two hours, I'm incredibly drunk and so is Edward. We're laughing and joking and dancing and kissing and generally having a great time. We're also buying drinks every five minutes... It's fun. I realise I'm having fun for the first time in about six years, and you know what?

I love it.

-**THE NEXT MORNING**-

"Bella?" I hear a distant voice say.

"Go away..." I grunt.

"Bella, honey, it's me, wake up." I hear the voice say again.

I gradually open my eyes and then my headache hits me like a brick to the face.

"Shit! Ouch, my head kills." I curse.

"Aw, I know honey, mine too." The voice shouts.

"Stop shouting!" I shout, "Ouch, shit that hurts." I complain.

"I'm not shouting sweetie, I promise."

"Where the hell am I?" I say when my eyes are fully open.

"At my house, honey. You stayed here last night, I think." The voice says.

I look around trying to place the voice, when I see Edward smiling fondly down at me. I look down and his chest is bare. I look down under the covers and see my own naked body and the rest of Edward's also naked body. I gasp.

"Did we...?" I ask.

"I have no idea, I don't remember a thing, and I'm guessing you don't either." He says.

"Not a thing, past my arrival. Shit, my dad's going to kill me." I frown in frustration.

"Wait... So you don't remember the office, or Nathan?" He asks sounding peed off.

"What office thing, and who's Nathan?" I ask confused.

He leans down and goes to kiss me; I push him away and say, "What the hell! I'm pretty sure we had this discussion last night, my daddy would kill me, Edward."

"I was only re-enacting the office."

"We kissed?"

"Yeah and then we were joined at the hip for the whole night as far as I remember, apart from when that... Never mind." He trails off.

"What? When what?"

"You kind of got pissed at me and stormed off and started making out with some asshole from LSL and then he was groping you openly and it was disgusting and you just _let him_. That was what made me really angry, you just let him grope your ass like it was a stress ball and it was disgusting. Everyone was staring and then you lead him to my dad's partner's office and you almost had _sex _with him! You nearly did it with him, Bella, and that made me really mad. I burst in there and you were all over him and he was grinding into you and you were kissing him really hard and he was pulling you close to him and if I hadn't have come in when I did, I swear he'd have had you on the desk, bare and spent. It was disgusting to see, trust me. The worst thing was you were sober at that point." He says, with a disgusted look crossing his face every couple of seconds. "Actually, no, the worst part was that I wished it was me, not him."

"I did _what_?" I shout, completely baffled.

"You almost did what your dad does." He says simply.

I sit realising that I couldn't remember anything I had done with Edward. Apparently we'd kissed and from our current situation, I'm guessing we'd had sex, but I couldn't remember a thing. I move closer to him, realising how ready my body was for him. Whoa, I really underestimated my affection for him.

"Bella, what are you doing?" He asks.

I sit by his side, taking his hands in each of mine, wrapping his arms around me. He looks shocked and I smile.

"Are you sure about this?"

"I'm pretty sure my dad is going to kill me if he finds out, but hey ho, I need to talk to you about something." I say. "But wait... Let me get appropriately dressed."

I jump out of bed and retrieve my bra and panties and put them back on. Whilst I do this, Edward retrieves his boxers and puts them on. When I see my bag and go to get it, he grabs me from behind and pulls me to him.

"You know, I always wanted this with someone." He says in my ear.

I turn in his arms and say, "Well... it's about time you got it, I guess."

"Really? I thought the world was too cruel for that." He chuckles.

"Oh really? Well, I guess it is..."

"No, no, it's really not." He protests, tightening his grip around me.

I pull out of his grip and go to my bag, saying, "Why do I have an overnight bag?"

"See now that I do remember. You insisted that we get one before we came here. But that's all I remember." Edward replies.

I pull a brush through my hair and go over to Edward, stopping about a metre away from him.

"I've just realised, what date is it?" I ask.

"June twenty-fourth. Why?" He frowns at me.

I gasp knowing that I'm supposed to work today.

"Why the gasp?"

"I have to work today, I am so sorry. Wait, I finish early." I say with a smile playing around my lips.

"What time?"

"Half past six." I grin joyfully.

"That's early for you? Early for me is half past three…" He trails off with a serious case of foot in mouth.

"Yup, that's the shortest shift that you can do at our firm… Our employees know what they're getting themselves into, of course, when they're hired to begin with."

"Ah… it's just a little… late. That's all." He smiles.

"You want to do this, right?" I gesture to us both.

"Yes, of course, you know that, Isabella." He frowns at my questioning of his loyalty to the much seeked-out relationship, on his part anyhow.

"So, why are you being so objective when I'm asking if you want to do dinner tonight?" Now it's my turn to frown at him.

"You're asking me… Oh." He looks more than a little confused.

"Why else would I bring up what time I finish work, if not to make it up to you that I have to leave you alone all day?"

"I… I have no idea. I don't know why I even questioned you. But I need to ask you something, Is." He ends with an apprehensive look.

"What do you need to ask me, Edward?" I ask, almost dying with curiosity.

"Would you ever consider… I mean, you don't have to and I know that your father would… Ah to hell with Charles Swan! Would you ever… What I'm trying to say is… Isabella…" He stumbles over his words, cursing profusely at the end of his rant.

I close the gap between us and kiss him hard on the lips, but chastely at the same instant.

"What was that for?" He asks, astounded.

"To stop you babbling like a buffoon when I already knew what you were going to ask me, silly."

"What…?"

"Yes." I simply say.

"Pardon?" He looks entirely confused by my forwardness.

"Yes, I will be your official girlfriend. Happy?" I say, smiling like an idiot.

"Oh… How did you know? In fact, no it doesn't matter. You are all I need, I don't need an answer."

"I can read your eyes, Edward."

"Oh." He grins and hugs me tightly. "And yes."

Now it's my turn to be confused, "Huh?"

"Dinner, half past five, I'll collect you from work. I need to 'talk with you about the case anyway'." He winks.

"Okay… That's fine, I can't wait." I smile and go jump in the shower.

After around half an hour, I am showered and ready for work. My hair is slung up into a messy bun style with some heavy-ish eyeliner (making me look less tired). I wear a cropped ballet-style black top with long sleeves paired with some tan high waisted shorts complete with my favourite Betsey Johnson 'Racey Lacey' tights and some Koolaburra Veleta Suede Fringed Ankle Booties which were also black. To complete the look I add a blue graffiti print Alexander McQueen scarf, a Sabrina Dehoff/Swarovski bracelet and a ring. I wonder how I managed to pack such a good outfit, which my father will clearly disapprove of.

I wander out into the bedroom and see Edward in his skinny faded jeans and fitted white t-shirt. Damn, could he be anymore hot; you could see his defined abs through the t-shirt. I go over to him and smile before kissing him softly on the lips. He grins.

"So, we're going to your office together, are we?" He says, mischievously, with a light in his eye that I could not put down to anything less than our newfound relationship.

I suddenly feel the need to tell him what's been sitting on my mind for the better part of three days, since we met officially.

Yes. Look, Edward, this is already deeper than I was ever willing to go with someone in a relationship again…" I trail off wondering if it would be wise to go on. I don't make a habit of telling people my life story.

"Again?" He says quietly.

I look to the floor and attempt to continue the conversation, but as if we had never talked about my old relationship. It's safe to say it was a sorely failed attempt.

"Issy?" He asks, worriedly.

"I really don't want to talk about it, okay?" I say sourly.

"Okay, sweetie, don't worry about it." He smiles.

"Edward, are we going?" I shout up the stairs.

Edward had offered to give me a lift to work because he needed to talk to William about the case. I had accepted but nonetheless insisted to pay for dinner tonight. After much arguing, he agreed to my terms.

"Let's." He takes my hand and we walk out together, smiling wider than either of us ever had.

When we get to the office we untangle our hands and walk in to the main building in a professional manner. We walk into my pre-office and greet Angela.

"Hey Ang." I grin.

"Bella! Aren't you like… majorly hung over? You normally are, and you drank a fair bit from what Nathan said last night." She asked, confused.

"Nathan?"

"The guy you almost slept with…" Edward puts in.

"Oooooh." Ang inputs.

"Never mind, anyway, we have something that we need to tell you but it's confidential, so you mustn't spread it."

"Okay, I promise not to..." She smiles.

"We're together. So if Edward comes in to the office asking to see me for case business, send him right in, okay?" I say, grinning up at Edward.

"Of course, Bella." She grins.

"Right, well, Bella," Edward winks. "I need to get to my meeting with William, so I'll see you later, okay sweetie?" He kisses my temple and hugs me.

"Okay, I... Okay." I smile and internally curse at my almost slip up.

"Aw, come here." He pulls me to him and whispers in my ear, "I know it's early but... I... I love you, Bells."

"I love you too." I whisper in reply. Then I remember.

"Edward." I tug him back by his arm.

"Yeah?"

"The PTD is at two…" I smile.

"See you then." He winks at me and smiles before going to his meeting.

I sigh heavily and go into my office.

**Edward POV**

I leave Bella's office and smile at everyone I pass due to my utter happiness. When I approach William Lake's door, I feel nervous. I knock loudly and wait for admittance.

"Come in, Edward." A sharp voice calls me in.

I enter the dark room and instantly feel intimidated. I tense slightly and walk up to the desk.

"Edward Cullen, Cullen Law." I shake his hand. "You called for a meeting, sir?"

"William Lake, Lake Swan Law... I did." He smirks.

I suddenly wonder why I'm here and if it is anything to do with our case.

"Cullen, let's get a little more casual, shall we?" He smirks wider and I become even more increasingly confused.

"I'm not sure I know why you called me here, Mr. Lake." I frown a little.

"Oh, I think both you and Isabella know why you were called here, Edward."

His use of my forename startles me slightly. I did not expect such casualness from an A-List lawyer such as William Lake.

"I don't believe I do, Mr. Lake."

"Call me William, Edward. If I am to be so casual in this little meeting of ours then so are you." He snipes. His abruptness is rather rude, in my opinion.

I think back to when I first came across the arrangement for a meeting.

_**Flashback**_

_"Edward, get in here." My father calls._

_"Yeah?" I walk in and reply._

_"William Lake wants to have a meeting with you, he says its confidential and he cannot confide the reason in me?" My father sounds profusely confused._

_"Um... Okay?"_

_"I get a feeling it isn't to do with the case, because I'm working on that case and he would have no reason to be confidential about it..." He says._

_"Hm... I'll let you know when I know."_

_**End Flashback**_

"Now, Edward. Let's define the meaning of this meeting, shall we?" He queries. "In fact, maybe Isabella should be present…" He trails off and shakes his head once. "No, that would limit the amount we could say."

"Pardon? Sorry to be so… But what does this have to do with Ms Swan?" I ask, confused.

"Your little fling with Isabella, Edward, is completely inappropriate." He smirks.

"It is?" I ask. Wait, is he talking about what I think he's talking about?

"Clearly, she didn't tell you about us." What?

"Pardon?"

"Our little… Thing last summer." He chuckles to himself. "Oh, those hips and that _ass._ She's so good too. You would have been a lucky man, Cullen."

What a dirty old man. He is absolutely disgusting. Bella would never have slept with him; she has too much self-respect. Christ, she wouldn't even sleep with me sober yesterday and everyone tells me that I'm hot… I don't think I am though.

"Would've been?" I raise an eyebrow.

"Yes, would've been. She belongs with me, Edward. Don't you see that?"

"No, sir, as a matter of a fact, I don't see that because la… No I don't." I quickly correct myself.

"You're a foolish young boy, Edward, if you believe that Isabella would ever sleep with you or even look at you twice. Believe me, her heart belongs with me." His eye glints as he smirks smugly.

As much as it is unprofessional, I would honestly love to slap that smirk off of his face.

"Well, William, I believe you're sorely mistaken if you honestly think that Isabella Swan would ever act in the shadow of her father's past. She is stunning and deep and everything that you and Charles Swan could never be. She has far too much self-respect, she is stubborn and lord knows I'd love her to be otherwise. But she is gorgeous and sensitive and _mine._" I say, with a determined look on my face.

"Oh and how would you justify your claiming of Isabella?" He sniggers, thinking he has proved something.

"Because, he asked me out like last year and I said yes. Edward is my partner; now back off and stop with this stupid infatuation with me. Also stop making yourself believe that we slept together, William, because I would _never_ be so stupid. Good bye, Lake." Bella butts in before grabbing my hand and dragging me away.

"What the hell were you still doing in there once you figured out his game?" Bella hisses at me when we're in the safety of her office. "He is so dangerous, Edward."

Her eyes are pleading with me for answers and I want to give an honest one.

"I was curious; I wanted to know what he thought he had on me." I say.

Okay, that was a complete lie.

"Edward, stop lying to me, I can practically hear you telling yourself it's a lie."

Damn.

"Fine, honestly, I don't know. I just… He makes me so angry. He was talking about you like you just go around with every guy in the office every day and I guess when I had a chance to defend you, I just wanted to feel like I was doing something right." I look away as I say the last bit, not wanting her to question it.

"What do you mean 'doing something right'?" She asks.

Well, it's unavoidable now, I guess.

"My dad always says I'm an awful lawyer and I can't do anything right. Basically he makes me feel like crap."

"Bull! Edward, you're an amazing lawyer!" Bella shrieks at me.

"I am not. Anyway…"

**Bella POV**

"Stop putting yourself down, for Christ's sake!" I scream at Edward.

We'd been arguing for the better part of half an hour over how good a lawyer Edward is. In my opinion, he was being utterly ridiculous and I'm too stubborn to back down.

"I'm not! I'm stating the facts! Bella, be real, I am _not _a good lawyer!" He screams back.

"Whatever, Edward," I huff. "I'm pretty sure the whole office can hear you!" I shriek before storming out.

I couldn't take anymore back and forth.

"Wait! Bella, come back! You're being ridiculous!" He calls across the office to me.

"Oh, that is _it!_ I am not being ridiculous, you're the one being ridiculous!" I shout at the top of my voice.

"I am not!" He shouts back and makes his way over to me.

I stand with crossed arms and a frown on my face.

"What?" I hiss at him. "Come to shout at me a little more?"

"No. I've come to talk calmly with you." He says in a calm voice.

"Well I don't want to talk to you, so go home!" I shout.

"Move in with me."

Wait, what?

"What?" I shriek.

"Move in with me." He says, as if it's the most normal thing ever.

"No!" He's really trying my nerves.

"Why?"

"I don't want to!"

"Fine, bye."

"Wait!" I shout, unintentionally.

He stops and runs back to me. "What?"

Without thinking, I grab his shirt and pull him to me.

"You sure about this, here?" He asks.

I nod and lean onto my tiptoes.

"Bella, wait, think about this and what effect it will have."

"It will show everyone that I'm yours and your mine, now shut up and kiss me." I say.

He obeys my command and kisses me. I let go of his shirt in favour of putting my arms around his neck. Everyone's eyes are boring into us and we break apart. I smile and take his hand, leading him into my office.

"So, the office knows we're dating… That's going to be a little awkward, don't you think?" Edward asks.

"Nope, not at all. Maybe now all my colleagues will stop thinking they have a chance." I smirk.

"What?" He looks puzzled.

"Don't you see the way they all look at you when you walk through the office? They obviously think they have a chance… Not anymore though." Annoyance peeks through my voice as I think of all the 'looks' I've gotten for my co-working with Edward.

"Well, that's an interesting fact that I've never noticed before." He sighs.

The rest of the day is fairly peaceful, I go back to Edward's place at the end of the night after our dinner and we sleep side by side in perfect harmony.

-**SIX MONTHS ON-**

It had been six months and the property case had been postponed. Our pretrial discovery was this afternoon. Edward and I had been living together for as long and were a strong couple. It's now Christmas Eve and I am on a high.

My phone beeps simultaneously to Edward's, signalling that we both have a message.

I smile up at him and open the text; he returns the smile and looks to his phone.

_**Bob: Hey, honey, how's things? You can open the envelope tomorrow, yaaay! I saw an interesting picture earlier; call me? Love you! Bob xoxo3**_

I smile down at my phone and look up to meet the eyes of a frowning Edward. I place my phone on the desk and pull his head to make his eyes meet mine.

"You okay?" I ask, meeting his anger with confusion.

"Mmph." He grunts, angrily.

"What's wrong?" I don't understand why he's so… frustrated.

"Who the hell is Bob?" He sounds really angry and I laugh loudly. "Why are you laughing when you're clearly cheating on one of us!" He growls.

I laugh even more and try to explain myself when I remember that he still didn't know, even after six months. "Oh, honey, you're so cute when you're being protective." I smirk.

"Explain to me why you're cheating on me." He fumes.

"Bob is my mom." I laugh hysterically.

"What?" He sounds dumbfounded.

"Bob, the mysterious 'boyfriend' of mine, is my mother."

"So why isn't she called Mom like any normal person?"

"My dad refused me any contact with her after she refused to be a lawyer. So we live a secret mother/daughter relationship." I laugh.

"Oh… I assumed… I just assumed that first day when you had to rush off and stuff… That you were in a relationship with some guy called Bob…"

"You peeked at my phone that day?" I ask.

"Yup…" He blushes profusely.

"Oh, god, it would look that way, wouldn't it? I get a text off of some guy called Bob and have to rush off out of the blue." I curse loudly at the end of my speech and lift a hand to pinch my nose.

"I am so sorry, Edward… I rushed off because I was supposed to attend some meeting thing with William and my dad about promotion, which I knew was never going to happen, but William was behind you and waiting and… Oh my god, I'm such an idiot. I didn't think." I ramble.

"Shhh, baby. It's okay, I get it now." He hushes me.

I look down after smiling and text my mom back.

_**Steve: Hey! It's all good**__** I know I'm so happy to open it… I can't wait to see you! It's been too long… And of course, I will, in a little while; case stuff, you know **__**Love you too! Steve xoxo3**_

I hit 'send' and lock my phone before pushing it back into my bag. Edward smiles at me and pulls me into a hug.

"Who was your message from?" I ask, curiously.

"Dad, saying he was on his way over with Harry…"

The ringing of my desk phone interrupts me as I begin to reply. I sigh heavily and go over to answer.

"Hey, Ange. What's up?" I say exasperatedly.

"Miss Lewis is here, Bella." She says into the phone. "And I have Bob on line 2."

"Okay, send Kerry to William and pass me Bob." I grin over my shoulder to Edward.

"Okay, Bella." She says before I hear a click.

"Belllla!" My mom screeches down my ear. "How are you, honey?"

"Hey, Bob! I'm great thanks, how are you?" I say, brightly.

"I am fine, thank you sweetie! I'm glad you're well." She sounds overly excited.

"Why are you calling my work phone, anyway?"

"I couldn't get hold of your mobile, some guy kept answering it… Wanna tell me what's going on there?" She leaves a hinting silence hanging.

"Maybe… Just let me deal with the guy first. I must have left my phone on the desk that I put it on and he must have picked it up, be right back Mom."

I chuckle to myself and go over to Edward, who is sat in my chair spinning like a kid. I sock him in the arm, hard.

"Ouch! Bella! What the hell was that for!" He exclaims in aggravation.

"Give me my phone." I growl.

"What? I don't have your phone! I swear, baby, I don't have it." He pleads with me.

I sock his arm in the same spot, "Give me my phone and stop being a damn liar, Edward!"

"Ooh, Edward, huh? He sounds sexy…" My mom says into the phone.

"Ew! Mom, stop hitting on my boyfriend." I say, a disgusted look crossing my face.

"Ha! So you admit it, you have a boyfriend!" She boasts and begins to mutter to herself.

"Mom…" I say, sighing.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha. I knew it! Ha!"

I sigh heavily and whack Edward again. "Give me my phone."

"Bella," He grabs both of my arms. "I don't have it, I swear."

"Stop lying!" I try to hit him but fail miserably.

"I swear, I don't have it." I can tell this time that he really doesn't have it. This winds me up more.

"Then who the hell does!" I shriek.

"Language, Isabella." I hear my father say from behind me.

"I'm sorry, sir, something's come up. I'll return your call later, okay?" I say to my phone, hinting that Dad had just arrived.

"Okay, honey, bye! I love you!" She whispers.

"Yes, okay, goodbye." I say solemnly before hanging up and passing the line back to Ange. "Thanks, Ange. Okay, yeah, thanks bye." I put my phone down.

"Isabella."

"Daddy, what's wrong?" I say, innocently.

"Why are you and Mr Cullen not at the pre-trial discovery?"

"He needed a file." I look back at Edward. "Didn't you, Mr Cullen?"

"I did, Ms. Swan. I have it," He holds up an empty file that he had written on and slide blank paper into. "Here it is, let's go. Sorry to waste time, Mr Swan." He smiles apologetically before nodding to me.

"Okay. Sorry, Daddy. See you later?"

"Yes, we will be having a chat later, Isabella."

I leave the room with Edward and whisper, "That was a close one."

He nods and we enter the PTD room.

"Sorry for our lateness, Mr Lake. We were attempting to find a file; turns out Edw- Mr Cullen already had it and in the process, I somehow lost my phone…" I frown and take my seat next to Kerry. "Lovely to meet you, Miss Lewis. I'm your representative counsel, Isabella Swan. I'm sorry to say that we haven't met prior to this day."

"Lovely to meet you, Ms. Swan. I'm terribly sorry about that fact, I wish we had. Mr Lake says you're the best, so I'll take his word for it." She smiles.

"Okay, right. Take a seat, Edward." William says to Edward. "Introductions are in order, I believe?"

Everyone looks around and I frown.

William points to me, "This is LSL's best lawyer, Miss Isabella Swan. She is Charles' daughter and the kindest person you will ever meet, however ruthless she is on a case." He smiles to me. "Then we have the client of LSL, Miss Kerry Lewis." He gestures to Kerry and smiles. "Then myself, I am William Lake… As you all know, I am a partner in LSL, standing for Lake Swan Law." He grins. "Then we have Mr Edward Cullen of Cullen Law… Fantastic lawyer, he is. And his father, Mr Carlisle Cullen, owner of CL. Then we have Harry Radcliffe of Charles, Radcliffe and Son Real Estate, otherwise known as CRSRE. Lastly we have Elaine Cotterswald, the minute noter."

He gestures quickly to each of the Cullens and their client before grinning to Elaine. I sigh.

"Problem, Isabella?" William asks.

"Nope… Continue." I say in a tired voice.

Edward catches my eye and mouths with a frown, "You okay?"

I nod and smile. Then I hear it; my ringtone for my mom.

I rudely interrupt William, "Wait, hold up. Do you hear that?"

"Isabella, it's unprofessional of you to have your phone on at a pre-trial discovery… Note it in the minutes, Elaine." He sighs and frowns at me.

"I don't believe you realised, William," I say harshly. "But it was-"

I'm cut off by Carlisle, "Ms. Swan mentioned when both her and my son entered the room that they had been searching for her mobile phone, Mr Lake… She made clear that she appeared to have lost it."

I smirk at Carlisle and mouth, "Thank you."

He mouths back, "Anytime, daughter-in-law." He winks at me and smiles broadly.

"Yes, well it is evident that Ms. Swan has in fact _not _misplaced her mobile phone. Turn it off." He snaps.

"I don't have it…" I trail off. "It's coming from over there." I point to the bag pile.

"Wait, Isabella," Kerry interrupts us all. "What type of phone do you own?"

"Now, Miss Lewis, I don't think that's necessary…" William says hesitantly.

"A white iPhone 3GS, why?" I frown in confusion.

"I saw Mr Lake with a white iPhone 3GS earlier on… It rang that same tune."

"What are you trying to say, Miss Lewis?" William looks astounded.

I get up and make my way over to the bags. I pick up William's bookbag and open it.

"Ms. Swan, I'm sure as a lawyer you know that is quite illegal…" He rambles on.

"Oh, shut up William." I hear my father say.

Wait… My father?

"Daddy?" I ask, confused. I turn and meet the eyes of the man who raised me.

"Baby, I'm sorry…"

"What for?" I look to Edward for help; he shrugs.

"Pass me the bag." My father says, so I obey.

He pulls out my phone and everyone with the exception of me and my father gasps.

"Isabella, I have been an awful father over the years and I want you to know I have spoken to your mother." He looks disgusted with himself. "Babybel, I would do anything for you to forgive me for my awfulness. Losing your mother messed me up, honey, so I looked to my needy yet desperate colleagues to satisfy me… It was wrong, I know, and it must have torn you up seeing you like that. I know for a fact male trollops in the office have expected the same from you."

"Daddy…"

"Please, Bella let me finish. I know about you and young Cullen here."

"Shit." I curse.

"Language, Isabella. Anyway, I want you both to know, you have my blessing." He looks specifically to Edward whilst saying this.

"Um, sir… Do you want this in the minutes?" Elaine timidly enquires.

"No thank you, Elaine." He smiles for the first time in a while, "Carlisle, you and your son are both respectable men and I trust that Edward will keep my Babybel safe. Thank you for alerting me of their relationship, it has turned me around. As unlikely as it would seem, it has made me understand how much my selfishness has affected my only child. I have not enough words to express my gratefulness to you, Carlisle, and I am glad we can be friends."

I smile, tearfully, looking at Edward.

"My Isabella, I want you to take over the firm. I don't want to be a lawyer anymore; it has made a bitter man of me. I want you to take my team of expert secretaries and promote Angela. She is good for you." He smiles.

"Thank you, Daddy."

"William, your free of your partnership in this firm, you're being paid a five thousand dollar buy out. You are officially fired."

I gasp, "But… Dad, William was your best friend."

"No, he was a convenience, Babybel. He went too far trying to dismiss my daughter's partner and attempting to claim you."

"He did _what_?" I exclaim.

"Bella… We can talk about this… later." Edward begins.

"No! We won't, we will talk about it now, while he's here to be disgraced." I spit.

"Isabella, as much as I would love to hit that man for saying the things he has about you, we must sort the company handover etcetera." My father says.

"Charles… Surely you're mistaken if you believe that Isabella will want me to leave the company… We're in a relationship." Lake stutters.

"What?" My father looks to me, disbelievingly.

"I can vouch for the fact that Isabella is most certainly not in a relationship with you, Mr Lake. My son is Ms. Swan's boyfriend and has been for the past half year. I have witnessed it myself." Carlisle inputs.

"Is that so?" Now seemingly it is William's turn to look disbelievingly at me.

"Yes. I love Edward and there is nothing you can say that will change my opinion… You need to realise that we are in no way involved." I say sharply.

"Bella…" Edward begins.

"Edward…"

"Fine." He sighs heavily.

"Glad we understand each other." I say, with a smile.

"Isabella, surely this is not true?" William steps close to me.

Edward steps to my side and I say with confidence, "It is," I link my fingers with Edward's. "We are nothing, Mr Lake. Please leave _my_ family company." I smile as I look up at Edward.

Edward smiles briefly and tugs my hand so I am positioned behind him before speaking.

"Now, Mr Lake, I suggest that you take your 'certainness' elsewhere, as it is clear that Ms. Swan doesn't not appreciate your presence." He says sternly.

"Well, if I must… But this is not the last you will see of me, Isabella Swan. I _will _fight for my love." He spits.

"You're married, William, and she is 22 not 42, get over it." My father says bitterly. "Now if you don't mind, I would like to speak to my family, get out."

I snigger to myself and Edward chuckles beside me.

Carlisle takes the opportunity to speak up, "Well, I guess we better be going Edward… We aren't family, of course." He says hesitantly as if not wanting to be rude.

"You most certainly are…" My father says immediately.

"But…" Carlisle begins.

"You are family now, Carlisle. I can assure you that Isabella and Edward will be together for a long time."

"Well, in that case, thank you greatly, Charles."

"Please, call me Charlie."

Then I gasp. I have never heard anyone be so friendly with my father that he'd ask them to call him Charlie, not even me. But then, he was always Daddy to me.

"Thank you, Daddy." I smile.

"You're welcome, my Isabella. Now go home."

"But…"

"We're closing early today. I believe it's necessary." He smiles.

He leaves the room and shouts, "Get out of here, all of you. As of Monday, you will all be employed by Miss Isabella Swan, not I. You are on a lieu day for the rest of the week and will receive full pay for each day."

Everyone cheers and begins to chatter.

"You didn't have to do that, Dad." I say with a frown.

"You need time to set up the new company name, etc." He says.

I shout, "Hold it! The printing staff stays for the rest of the day please, we need new letterheads etc. You will be let out as soon as we finish and given an extra day off. Thanks."

"As of today, by the way, Mr Lake is no longer a part of our company; he is now under a persona non-grata. If seen around the building, report it. He is seeking Miss Swan for harassment. Off you all go." My father adds.

They all go and the print staff stay. I'm glad to say I get on well with them all, apart from one: Jessica Stanley.

Jess and I have a little… argument history. See, I was always adamant on my family company's employees being respectful to other company's employees. She just couldn't resist flirting with Edward.

_**Flashback**_

"_Hey Edward…" Jessica says blatantly staring at his ass. How rude._

"_Hey, Jess, how are you?" He returns politely. I'm pretty sure he must have noticed her staring at his rear by now._

"_I'm just fine and yourself?" She purrs. Ew._

"_I'm good thanks," He says with a light tone._

"_Oh yes you are…" She mutters._

"_Enough, Jessica. Please leave the room before I barf."_

"_Ew, whatever. You know just because your daddy is the owner of this company, so does not mean that you have any authority, okay? Plus, we made out and more." She fires back, smugly._

"_Leave, Miss Stanley." I snap._

"_Eugh, whatever Isabella." She snaps back and storms out._

"_Sorry about her, she knows full well that we have a respect policy when it comes to external lawyers floating around the building. It's silly that she thinks that it can be changed." I say apologetically._

"_I heard that!" Jess shouts._

"_Hey, Stanley, get in here!" I shout._

"_What, Swan?"_

"_Hey! Now stop being disrespectful and apologise to Mr Cullen for your blatant disrespect of his body."_

"_Sorry, Edward. I could make it up to you?" She flirts._

"_Beat it, slut." I say coyly._

"_Fine, but this most definitely is not over, Swan, in any way, shape or form." She hisses before she finally leaves._

_**End Flashback**_

I move into Edward's side and smile up at him. We walk, arm around each other, to my office. I sit at my desk and begin to design a new letterhead for our stationary. Whilst I am typing the name in I accidentally type in 'Cullen Law' instead of the agreed new name, 'Swan Executive Law'. Edward stops my hands and I look up.

"Just, look at that." He says with a smile.

"What? A typo?"

"No, Cullen." He says. I kind of like the way it comes out as if he's saying no to me, not 'no' and then pointing out my error.

I won't lie, I've been thinking about how much I would love to get married right now, but that's up to Edward, not me. I don't want to push him if he isn't ready.

"Bells?" He enquires.

"Uh huh?"

"What's wrong? You've been distracted for a few days now…"

"Nothing's wrong…"

"Okay, fine whatever. I need to ask you something."

"What?" I frown, confused.

"Get up." He orders.

"What?"

"Just do it, Swan."

"Fine…" I get up and he pulls me out of my office to the spot that we met that first day when I walked into him.

"Okay. Close your eyes."

"What?"

"Swan… Do it."

"Okay," I close my eyes and he puts my hands over them. I frown to myself.

I hear some rustling and a click then my hands are moved.

"Open your eyes."

I open my eyes and look down, to meet the eyes of Edward, on one knee. I gasp as it all clicks in my head.

"Isabella Marie Swan. You know how much I love you and I really don't want to bore you going on and on about how much I do. Right here, stood here, where we met. Tell me one thing, please?"

I squeak a response, somehow. I have no idea how.

"Okay, I'm going to do this right. I love you and will love you for the rest of my life. I will always want you, no one else."

He takes a breath and continues, "Marry me."

**AN: I know, it's probably not ending the way you expected but I lost interest in that time phrase half way throughish so I took it forward so something could actually happen between them! Drop me a review; let me know what you thought? Sorry it took so long, I was trying to pick my other story up. Much love! Liss. xx**


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